A FORMER hotel owner has won a major award for a quarter of a century of research in reducing diseases in moorland bird, the red grouse.

David Howarth, 64, ran a guesthouse before his interest in the countryside turned into a career, which involves monitoring the impacts of parasites on the breeding success of the native bird in the mountains close to his Kingussie home.

Starting out with no qualifications, Mr David has spent 25 years at the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust, with a focus on how gut worms and tick affect grouse breeding.

His work has been recognised by the Scottish Gamekeepers Association (SGA) with the Ronnie Rose Memorial Trophy for Conservation and Education, presented by Rural Economy Secretary, Fergus Ewing.

Mr Howarth said that by reducing diseases, the birds are helped as well as nearby sporting estates, which in turn help finance the continued management of the moorlands in the area. This in turn helps other species and has wider economic benefits.

He said: “When I gave talks with the Trust, I always tried to explain to people that the heather hills people love are not just there, naturally or by accident.

“It is the gamekeepers out there, largely unseen, managing the heather and keeping a lid on the predators that makes it look the way it is.”

SGA Chairman Alex Hogg said the work of researchers like David had helped to create stability and employment in rural communities.